The Dallas Mavericks' season is hanging by the slimmest of threads. Despite acquiring Kyrie Irving at the trade deadline to give Luka Doncic a co-star, the Mavs have fallen off the pace, falling to the eighth spot in the Western Conference amid a plethora of injury woes to their best players. In particular, Doncic has suffered a bit of a knock on his thigh, which would keep him out for at least the Mavs' next game against the Los Angeles Lakers.

Nonetheless, these struggles have not precluded the Mavs star from enjoying his time as he recovers from his injury. In fact, Doncic seems close enough to a return especially after putting on an impressive display in practice — but for another sport.

Per Callie Caplan of Dallas Morning News, Luka Doncic was practicing his football (soccer) skills during the Mavs' practice on Thursday.

Of course, football is the biggest sport in Luka Doncic's home nation of Slovenia, so it's not a surprise that he is able to show off some of the skills he has picked up over the years. He even looked like a natural when he chested down a basketball, which is more difficult to pull off than with a regular football due to it being heavier.

Moreover, it's no secret that the Mavs star is a huge Real Madrid fan. He tweeted out, “Its so nice to be a REAL MADRID fan!😊” back in May 2022 after the Los Blancos took home their 14th UEFA Champions League trophy by dispatching of Liverpool, 1-0, in the final.

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Chris Paul in normal clothes on left. Mavericks' Luka Doncic shooting a basketball on right.

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Mavericks' Luka Doncic, Mavericks' Kyrie Irving both in front. Shaquille O'Neal, Charles Barkley, and Brian Windhorst in background with eyes popping out looking at Luka and Kyrie.

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Mavericks' Kyrie Irving, Mavericks' Jason Kidd both in front. Mavericks and Clippers logos in background.

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Doncic should also be in bedlam at the moment, since his beloved football club just defeated Liverpool once again in the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League recently, with Real Madrid taking home an easy 6-2 win on aggregate following their thrashing of the Reds in Anfield during the first leg.

To top it all off, the Mavs star also played for the basketball division of the Real Madrid multi sports club before he entered the NBA.

At the end of the day, however, Mavs fans will want Doncic back on the court as soon as possible to avoid any further drop-off that could come from an extended absence.